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HeadCount On A Mission

HEADCOUNT PLANS TO REGISTER UP TO 200,000 NEW VOTERS THROUGH LIVE CONCERTS
Former Time Warner Executive Joins Forces with
Artists, Volunteers to Lead Young Organization

HeadCount, the volunteer-run voter registration organization that registered nearly 50,000 voters in 2004 through alliances with Dave Matthews Band and other artists, has announced an ambitious plan to stage voter registration drives at more than 500 concerts over the next year, with a goal of registering 200,000 new voters.

HeadCount will be the only national organization to stage voter registration at concerts on a large scale in 2008, employing registration methods it has tested and perfected over the last three years.

Virginia McEnerney, the former Vice President of Corporate Relations at Time Warner Inc., has been named the first full-time executive director of the non-profit organization, which to this point had been run entirely by volunteers. Dave Matthews Band, the Allman Brothers Band, and members of Phish and the Grateful Dead continue to be aligned with HeadCount, along with new artists such as O.A.R.

"What HeadCount has accomplished to this point is nothing short of remarkable," said McEnerney, who spent 10 years with Time Warner before leaving the company in 2005 to become an independent consultant to non-profit organizations. "I believe we are poised to step from being an entirely grassroots operation, to becoming a nationwide force and spreading participation in democracy to an even broader audience."

HeadCount is using the occasion of Election Day to announce details of its 2008 strategic plan and make a call for volunteers to join the street teams that register voters at concerts. Volunteers can sign up at www.headcount.org. For the first time, some will be eligible for modest, performance-based stipends, marking another important step in HeadCount's evolution.

The volunteer network will form street teams in approximately 50 U.S. cities, each working with affiliated bands and promoters to set up voter registration tables at concerts. The organization will also send volunteers on the road with major artists, an approach that helped register over 12,000 new voters on the Dave Matthews Band tour in 2004 – an all-time record for a single concert tour.

In addition, HeadCount has invested in state-of-the-art voter registration software and expects to register tens of thousands of voters through www.headcount.org. This activity will be buttressed by extensive "get-out-the-vote" activity, working directly with artists to encourage people of all ages to head to the polls in 2008.

"If we don't protect democracy today, there won't be a democracy to protect in a few years," said former Grateful Dead guitarist Bob Weir, a member of HeadCount's board of directors. "I think for the younger folks this is particularly important, because the decisions we make will largely affect the rest of their lives."

HeadCount not only gives people the opportunity to register to vote, it offers thousands of young music fans a taste of activism. Volunteers receive intensive training in voter registration guidelines and practices, and get hands-on experience on community organizing.

Marc Brownstein, bass player for the popular electronic rock band The Disco Biscuits, continues to serve as HeadCount's co-chair.

"This was something we started as a dream, just a crazy idea that we believed we could pull off," said Brownstein, who founded the organization along with longtime friend Andy Bernstein, author of a series of books about the group Phish. "Now it's almost four years later, and we are in it for the long-term. We hope HeadCount leaves a permanent imprint on the live music community, forever getting fans more engaged in the political system and democracy itself."

View a short video profile of HeadCount at www.headcount.org or youtube.com/watch?v=pmJtLZVxTfQ. Features interviews with Bob Weir, Bela Fleck and many other top artists.

HeadCount is a 501c3 non-partisan organization that utilizes the multi-faceted power of music to enable voter registration and inspire participation in democracy. Since its inception in 2004, the organization has registered over 60,000 voters, more than any volunteer-run organization in the U.S. Its board of directors includes Bob Weir of the Grateful Dead, other well-known musicians, and the very top managers, promoters and media publishers in the live music community. More information can be found at www.headcount.org

Virginia McEnerney was named HeadCount's Executive Director in October, 2007. She joined the organization after a varied career in media and publishing, most recently as Vice President of Corporate Relations at Time Warner, Inc. Virginia has a particular interest in the role of nonprofit Board of Directors and will work closely with HeadCount's board to lead the organization and fulfill its mission. Virginia has been involved in community service since she ran a food drive at St. Edward, the Confessor School on Long Island in 7th grade. Currently, she is involved with several other nonprofits, including serving on the Board of Directors of the Prospect Park Alliance. She lives near the Park in Brooklyn with her husband and two daughters.

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Comments

As part of this organization (as well as part of Jambase), I encourage all of us to get out there and vote! Our future is on our hands, and HeadCount consists of regular music fans like you and me...but also want to make a change; make a difference.

Brownstein better be careful putting a corporate pig on the payroll... Time Warner just happens to be the third largest corruptor in this country. Surpassed onlt by Rupert Murdocs NewsCorp and ultimately by the so called American "educational" system. Notice the quotes around education. It should be called the american programing system because they dont educate kids nearly as much as they program them to be mindless consumers incapable of critical thought... This is the only reason the federal govt has an department of education, to control the indoctrination of america's youth...

Remember people, above all, dissent is the highest form of patriotism. Democracy NOW!!!

He's the only candidate that won't sink the already water-logged vessel that is America. He wants to bring us back to a Constitutional Democracy and restore our freedom and our liberties, and most importantly, get us OUT of never-ending war. He's also one of the only candidates (besides kucinich and gravel) who do not belong to elitist, globalist corporations such as Bilderberg, Council on Foreign Relations, the World Trade Organization, etc.

The mainstream media have done their best to ensure that Paul remains a fringe candidate, but Americans are catching on and realizing that he is probably our only ticket out of the mess we are in.

I'll scream it from the rooftops: Inform yourself! Check out Ron Paul!!!!

Congressman Ron Paul is the only presidential candidate who has openly called the war on drugs a phony propoganda tool to further the size and power of the federal government. If you want the opportunity to have your state decide if legalizing marijuana is the right thing to do or not, vote for freedom, vote for Republican Ron Paul. check out ronpaullibrary.org Multiple entries on at least 20 issues in plain english so you know where he stands. Join Us! Freedom, Peace, & Prosperity!!! ronpaul2008.com

i like kucinich a lot, and i hate to say it, but i don't think he stands a chance. thanks to the media's obvious democratic nomination (hillary, in case no one's noticed), they've pretty much ignored the sane dems like kucinich and gravel. the republican race is still wide open, and even more so after paul's record breaking day yesterday. so i repeat: check out ron paul!

p.s. - sunnbear: paul has vowed to put an end to the war on drugs, as well as hurtful, unconstitutional organizations like the irs and the federal reserve

Yay Headcount. Ron Paul has some good ideas, but I don't agree with the fact that everything should be privatized. Our spending is out of control, but Big Brother isn't so bad. We need to help out our weakest links, not strengthen our strongest ones, and private organizations tend to have just as many inefficiencies as public ones.

delaneyira...I know what you are saying. The US has about 5% of the world's population and consumes 25% of its resources. It's not just the schools either. I heard a statistic recently that the average american around 4500 advertisements a day. I can look around the room and see about 25 right now. The programming literally comes from everywhere.

I wouldn't call Headcount "non-partisan"...I've spoke with their reps at various concerts. Just for fun (and to show that Headcount is not non-partisan), my buddy went to one of the Headcount tables and tried to register as a Republican...the girl working for Headcount would not allow him to fill out the registration paper and belittled him for wanting to register Republican (even after he stated we wasn't voting republican, he just wanted to register republican)...I'm sorry, but this is shady and no better than the looney, Christian right forcing thier beliefs and wants on everyone...Bottom line, Headcount either needs to be "truly non-partisan" or just come out, be honest, and tell people to vote for "anybody but the republican"...

This reminds me of the "South Park" episode where the school voted for a new mascot...the choices were Turd Sandwich and Douche Bag...when Stan didn't want to vote because he hated the choices, everyone preached about the importance of voting, until he decided to vote for the mascot Klye disliked...then, it wasn't about excercising his right to vote, but more of "who you should vote for"...this is how I feel when listening to Bob Weir (and I love Bob and the Dead)...

The two-party system is broke...both are corrupt and could care less about the average American...I like Ron Paul too...he doesn't have much of a chance, but hopefully, his message spreads...

In the end, though, it just saddens me to see something as selfish, corrupt, and shady as politics infiltrate the music scene...a place I like to go to get away from everything nasty...like politics and politicans (and those that play thier games)...

I wouldn't call Headcount "non-partisan"...I've spoke with their reps at various concerts. Just for fun (and to show that Headcount is not non-partisan), my buddy went to one of the Headcount tables and tried to register as a Republican...the girl working for Headcount would not allow him to fill out the registration paper and belittled him for wanting to register Republican (even after he stated we wasn't voting republican, he just wanted to register republican)...I'm sorry, but this is shady and no better than the looney, Christian right forcing thier beliefs and wants on everyone...Bottom line, Headcount either needs to be "truly non-partisan" or just come out, be honest, and tell people to vote for "anybody but the republican"...

This reminds me of the "South Park" episode where the school voted for a new mascot...the choices were Turd Sandwich and Douche Bag...when Stan didn't want to vote because he hated the choices, everyone preached about the importance of voting, until he decided to vote for the mascot Klye disliked...then, it wasn't about excercising his right to vote, but more of "who you should vote for"...this is how I feel when listening to Bob Weir (and I love Bob and the Dead)...

The two-party system is broke...both are corrupt and could care less about the average American...I like Ron Paul too...he doesn't have much of a chance, but hopefully, his message spreads...

In the end, though, it just saddens me to see something as selfish, corrupt, and shady as politics infiltrate the music scene...a place I like to go to get away from everything nasty...like politics and politicans (and those that play thier games)...

gmoo - i definitely agree with you. there are some areas where i don't feel paul exactly matches my stance on issues. ideally i would hope for him to link up with a v.p. candidate who would bring in more of a grounded focus on certain social issues (someone like a kucinich or gravel), though i know he'd probably rather croak than have a joint campaign with a dem. i don't like his privatization ideals, nor am i huge on his church/state views.

but i really, really don't like one world government or endless war, or a martial law police state, or real id, which we will doubtless have with hillary, edwards, obama, or any of the other repugs.

and i am "ready" to have a female or a black president, or both! so long as they aren't fucking evil

gmoo - i definitely agree with you. there are some areas where i don't feel paul exactly matches my stance on issues. ideally i would hope for him to link up with a v.p. candidate who would bring in more of a grounded focus on certain social issues (someone like a kucinich or gravel), though i know he'd probably rather croak than have a joint campaign with a dem. i don't like his privatization ideals, nor am i huge on his church/state views.

but i really, really don't like one world government or endless war, or a martial law police state, or real id, which we will doubtless have with hillary, edwards, obama, or any of the other repugs.

and i am "ready" to have a female or a black president, or both! so long as they aren't fucking evil

Great post, shipsubway. I agree with what you are saying. This is a "left leaning" group, which is fine, but they should come out and say it and be honest with their views.

I don't need someone from a crappy band like the disco-biscuits telling all the e-tards that go to their shows how to vote.

Realize this, last presidental election 126 million people voted in the US. This was ONLY 57% of the electorate that was eligible to vote. Apathy is at an all time high in the US, mostly because of the broken, corrupt 2 party system, IMO. I don't care what lame bands like OAR and biscuits think about the political process. I admire that headcount are trying to get kids involved, but registering to vote is very easy to do, most DMVs and local libaries can help you out in less than 5 minutes. Instead of trying to get a very small number of people to register(200K) they should work to reform this flawed system that is in crisis, due to corporations like Time Warner and how they warp the political discussion with money and their influence.

Ron Paul talks a good game and I give him props for not falling under the typical Republician stigma that each has his own distinct stench of their shit. Giulani is war mongering hungry-to-go-into-Iran dipshit and heartless since he's cashing in off of 9/11. He has no shame and makes me want to renounce being Italian.

McCain is a bumbling flip flopper of a choad and he's also someone that spent 5 years being tortured in a POW camp in Nam in which he could have used his plight to try to put an end to the current administrations torture free for all.

As for Fred Thompson, this fat bloated baboon has not a single shot. He's just some hick ass simpelton with a redneck drawl and hot ass wife young enough to be his granddaughther. If anybody were to ever debate him, all they would have to do is let him talk and talk to see how stupid he sounds. He's like a character from a Western B-film. Most of the people that support him only come out to his rallies and see him speak just so that they can have the oppurtunity to use indoor plumbing.

As for Mitt Romney.......eh, he's too easy to go after.

However, if you go to DarfurScores.org, Ron Paul has an F and he hasn't done shit to try and stop the conflict. So he better pony up and make some progress.

HeadCount really needs to get out to other concerts than just Dave shows this summer or any other fests where those registered to vote are sporting the patch pants and kickin the hackey sacks. They need to be at any and ALL outdoor festivals and concerts to make sure that the youth will vote so that our future leaders will see to it to try and make sure that America isn't a big imperialistic fuck up of an experiment with the corperate interest shaft in it's cavity. Ross Perot needs to make a comeback. At least he ran on a platform to run all the lobbyist's out of Washington.

I can't believe there are still people belittling and taking cheap shots at what HeadCount is trying to do. It's not the fact that these artists are trying to convince you who to vote for, they are merely trying to give people the opportunity to vote. Making fun of the bands involved does nothing but show your complete ignorance and is counter-productive. These artists are trying to help, why don't you just cut them a break?

There are far too many loud mouths when it comes to politics and music.

As much as I hate republicans, Im voting for RP. He is the only candadate to mention that the war on drugs is a phony propoganda device, he calls out the military industrial complex and he wants to do away with the federal reserve which keeps us enslaved in every way that mattters. I like the idea of getting rid of the department of education. That way things related to schooling children can be decided on a local level, where its supposed to be decided. His idea is to hand the federal education money right to the state and local officials who are inherently more accountable because they live and work in the same areas as thier constituency. As opposed to congress who work in DC where its almost impossible to hold them accountable, espcially nowadays with all the nazi security all over the place. He understands that america is under the spell of very secretive organizations. He has called out the skulls of yale, the bilderburg group, the masons, the council on foriegn relations and the federal reserve. The people in these orgs. choose what president our media is going to pic. The decide what wars to go into based on what will be most profitable and they get paid by guess who, us, by our taxes. We need to reduce the military spending by at least 75%, we need to close every forign military base and we need to send all our leaders from the past 75 years to the hague. And if you think thats crazy, then tell me why did we go to war with nicaragua, panama, guatamala, bolivia, el salvador, chile, vietnam(gulf of tonkin never happend but the hype of this staged event sent us to war). Why are we supporting isreal when they commit genocide on a daily basis? Why are we supporting a military dictator in pakistan that commits human rights abuses on a daily basis? Why did we support Suharto when he was slautering the people of east timor? Why did we overthrow a democratically elected leader in iran and reinstall the shah? Why did we support and enable saddam husein when he was commiting mass attrocities and using chemecal weapons? Why did we all of a sudden decide to get rid of him? Why did the CIA illegally wiretap john lennon? why did the cia test acid on an unknowing public in the 50s? Why wont they show the 80+ vids that would show conclusively what hit the pentagon? Why was the hole in the pentagon way too small to account for a huge jumbo jet hitting it? Why is there no debris of the plane found at the site right after the plane crash? Why were there perfect circles punched out of the walls at the pentagon as if it was a cruise missle strike? Why did they pour a 2 foor thick layer of sand over the lawn at the pentagon where the plan hit the building? Why did every building that fell in NY collapse right in on its self as would be expected in a controlled demolition? Where are the weapons of mass destruction? Did you know that at least 4 of the 19 supposed hijackers have turned up, alive? Why hasnt this been reported on the news? Why does everyone ignore these obvious questions? Does everyone deep down know the truth? Is everyone afraid to ask these questions because they are afraid of the answers? Everyone is obviously afraid to accept the truth because they are too chicken shit to own up to the fact that they were duped. Most americans are too arrogant to accept the fact they could be played like this. All the people can do is continue living thier lives ignoring the obvious truth, and hope the next staged terror attack doesnt kill them. It cant happen to you!!! Thats impossible!! Morons...

Nicely put, delaneyira! someone had to say it. It is for these same reasons that Ron Paul is being written off as a whack job vigilante by the mainstream press - because he is smart, eloquent and contextual. He actually considers WHY 'terrorists' might have attacked us, and no, it's not because we have 'freedom' or britney spears(That is, if 'they' even did attack us, which something that i don't buy. as you point out delaneyira, there are waaayyy too many unanswered questions and major red flags to buy the spoon-fed official story - i.e. Why did WTC 7 collapse, again perfectly into its own footprint at free-fall speed, when it was not hit by any aircraft? And why, if the towers fell on their own accord, from 'structural damage,' were half-ton chunks of steel and concrete catapulted outwards, as far as three or four blocks away onto adjacent buildings? Simply watch a video of either collapse. If these buildings fell on their own, why is their debris being BLASTED in every direction? If you believe the official story of 9/11, and you also believe in the infallible laws of physics, you have quite the conflicted account of what actually occured.)

Some more good questions include, why have we attacked two (going on three!) sovereign nations in response to this supposed attack by a group of hostile vagrant terrorists living in caves? Why have all our civil liberties dissapeared? (If you don't think you have a file with the FBI, CIA, or NSA, guess again. They're called data mines for a reason) Why are military-industrial corporations like Halliburton and FEMA building PRISON CAMPS within the United States? Why was BinLaden at one time on the CIA payroll? And why are members of his family a part of the elite organization the Carlyle Group, along with members of the Bush dynasty? And most importantly, why does no one really seem to care?

If you want to know something truthful, and I can assure you that you won't get it from any mainstream sources of news, here are some good websites for finding real information. know your enemy.

http://www.thenation.com

http://www.gnn.tv

http://www.truthdig.com

http://www.harpers.org

http://www.adbusters.org

http://www.truthout.org

http://www.indymedia.org

http://www.counterpunch.org

http://www.globalresearch.ca

http://www.truthnews.us

http://www.infowars.com

also, this is a really good video to catch us all up to date: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4PpMdTmVMpo

and, once more, Ron Paul is our way out of this brutal cycle of elite dynasties.

delan....Congrats on regurgitating the 9/11 conspiracy videos. You are such a critical thinker! How about the 100's of witnesses on the ground that claim a plane hit? Please, please show my moronic self the math that proves the building violated the laws of physics. I'm not afraid to accept truth, as you point out, but I am afraid of retards that blindly follow 9/ll conspiracy videos without doing their own due diligence. As for Tower 7, located only 300 ft from the WTC's, many, many buildings were damaged, located at even greater distances...Im not saying I buy the official story, but I am saying you look foolish spewing the BS of Loose Change. And dude, this is music web site; I really don’t like hearing your one-sided, misguided, inaccurate ranting on history. Why don’t you go to Rosie’s web page to shit on the U.S.

All he did was ask questions, Cutty. Do you have a problem with that? I don't think he should have called everyone a moron, but at least he is asking questions. You are so inundated with pop culture that you bring up, you guessed it, Rosie!?!?! You look really intelligent with that name drop.

additionally, delaney didnt say no planes hit the towers, cutty. what he brought up are questions that need to be asked. he's not claiming to have the answers, nor am i, nor are most of the people who are asking for the truth. we just don't want to be lied to anymore. and when such a momentous occasion has such blantant shadiness surrounding it (like the fact the FEMA disposed of all evidence with flatbed trucks en masse within hours after the attacks, or that bush said he saw the *first* plane strike the tower on live television when no station covered it, or that the FBI appeared at hotels and gas stations surrounding the beltway within minutes of the pentagon strike demanding surveillance tapes, etc etc), any true critical thinker would have some serious questions. especially since our absurd foreign policy has been legitimized time and again by said occasion if you don't buy the official story, what do you buy? ignorance? apathy?

and sure, it's a music site, sure we could simply ignore the extreme inconsistencies in the official account, sure we could just silence the questions by pumpin' the jams, but that wouldn't be very american would it?

additionally, delaney didnt say no planes hit the towers, cutty. what he brought up are questions that need to be asked. he's not claiming to have the answers, nor am i, nor are most of the people who are asking for the truth. we just don't want to be lied to anymore. and when such a momentous occasion has such blantant shadiness surrounding it (like the fact the FEMA disposed of all evidence with flatbed trucks en masse within hours after the attacks, or that bush said he saw the *first* plane strike the tower on live television when no station covered it, or that the FBI appeared at hotels and gas stations surrounding the beltway within minutes of the pentagon strike demanding surveillance tapes, etc etc), any true critical thinker would have some serious questions. especially since our absurd foreign policy has been legitimized time and again by said occasion if you don't buy the official story, what do you buy? ignorance? apathy?

and sure, it's a music site, sure we could simply ignore the extreme inconsistencies in the official account, sure we could just silence the questions by pumpin' the jams, but that wouldn't be very american would it?

yes, this thread is about headcount....and registering to vote is good. being an INFORMED VOTER is even better, and is something that is seriously lacking in the landscape of american political apathy. if only the general populous cared to ask these questions.....even if, after it was all said and done, it turned out to be non sequtur.

Actually from an economic perspective, voting makes no sense. The opportunity cost of me going to vote outweights voting itself. I have a better chance of dying on the way to the polling booth then my vote actually making a difference. An in a sense all of the canidates are the same when it comes down to the bottom line, watch during the general election. The canidates will go towards the median voter and in a sense they won't differ that much. All the canidates take shady amounts of money from special interest groups, so fuck em!!!!